Coinbase Files for CFTC Approval to List Single-Stock Perpetual Futures

According to a Wall Street Journal report cited by BitKE, the company is initially aiming at roughly 50 to 60 stocks, including Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Nvidia. Decrypt reported that the contracts would give traders leveraged exposure to individual stocks without ownership.

The CFTC application follows a Form 1-N registration that Coinbase Derivatives filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 1, 2026, to register as a national securities exchange for the limited purpose of offering security futures. The proposed contracts have not yet been approved and are not available to U.S. traders. Coinbase already offers equity perpetual futures to eligible customers outside the United States, having launched the products internationally in March 2026.

The filing comes as U.S. regulators press ahead on crypto oversight without new legislation. BitKE reported that the CFTC sent a proposed regulatory framework covering crypto asset transactions and markets to the White House for review. The submission, received by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs on September 17, is titled 'Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions and Regulation Crypto Asset Markets' and is classified as a prerule, meaning the agency has not yet formally proposed the rules. The filing does not specify which crypto assets or activities would be covered.

The regulatory action arrived two days after the Senate voted 49-50 against advancing the CLARITY Act, a bill intended to set up a federal framework for digital assets. BitKE reported that CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said after the vote that the agency was 'locked in and ready to ship' crypto market rules using its existing authority, while SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said the securities regulator would proceed 'with or without legislation.'

The European Central Bank has introduced Pontes, a settlement system linking its payment infrastructure to blockchain-based markets, with full implementation targeted for 2028.